Nearly half of the jobs most damaging to workers' health are in healthcare-related professions, according to a Business Insider report.
Business Insider listed 37 jobs that are most damaging to workers' health using data from the Occupational Information Network. To analyze jobs by their impact on workers' health, the authors measured six health risks in each of the 974 occupations listed in the database.
These measures included exposure to contaminants, exposure to disease and infection, exposure to hazardous conditions, exposure to radiation, risk of minor burns, cuts, bites, and stings and time spent sitting.
Here are the 18 healthcare jobs that made the list, ranked from those harshest on one's health to those relatively less harmful. For instance, dental hygienist is listed as the job hardest on workers' health, whereas radiologist is tied for the last spot on the list, meaning it is less impactful on workers' wellness.
1. Dental hygienist — No. 1
2. General dentist — No. 2
3. Dental laboratory technician — No. 4
4. Dental assistant — No. 5
5. Nurse anesthetist — No. 6
6. Prosthodontist — No. 7
7. Anesthesiologist — No. 9
8. Anesthesiologist assistant — No. 10
9. Podiatrist — No. 11
10. Histotechnologist/histologic technician — No. 13
11. Surgical assistant — No. 16
12. Surgical technologist — No. 18
13. Medical and clinical lab technologist — No. 19
14. Medical equipment preparer — No. 22 (tied with airline pilots, copilot, and flight engineer)
15. EMT/paramedic — No. 27 (tied with continuous mining-machine operator)
16. Critical care nurse — No. 31
17. Nuclear medicine technologist — No. 33
18. Radiologist — No. 34 (tied with metal-refining furnace operator and tender, embalmer and elevator installers and repairer)